1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to a vehicle accessory switch control panel for activating vehicle accessories, and more particularly, to a reconfigurable vehicle accessory switch control panel.
2. Description of the Related Art
Vehicle accessory input controls typically consist of a plurality of buttons, knobs, or menu driven display screens located on an instrument panel within the passenger compartment of a vehicle for controlling accessories such as multimedia, navigation, and climate control systems. Often the center console area of the instrument panel is cluttered with a large number single push button switches to control as many of the vehicle accessory functions as possible. A large number of switches is often aesthetically displeasing and confusing to a user. The more switches required to provide the ever increasing accessory functionality, the smaller the size each switch becomes in order to package them in the available space. Typically a user desires larger size switches in an uncluttered center console area.
Reconfigurable display units have been utilized to overcome the cluttered appearance of the center console area. Reconfigurable display units utilize either display screens or touch screens with menu driven options. The number of switches can be greatly decreased with the utilization of only a few switches to control the menu driven options. However, complicated menu structures are cumbersome to use because the user is required to transition through several menu screens in order to get to the desired function. Familiarity of the switch locations for activating vehicle accessories greatly decreases the time required to locate and actuate a switch for activating a vehicle accessory. When using reconfigurable displays, multiple menus may have to be accessed in order to activate an accessory. Simple operation and familiarity of switch locations are desirable to avoid a distraction to the driver operating the vehicle accessories.